SearchCap: The Day In Search, February 12, 2009

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Google, Yahoo & Microsoft Unite On “Canonical Tag” To Reduce Duplicate Content ClutterThe web is full of duplicate content. Search engines try to index and display the original or “canonical” version. […]

on February 12, 2009 at 11:24 pm | Reading time: 7 minutes
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Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.

From Search Engine Land:

  • Google, Yahoo & Microsoft Unite On “Canonical Tag” To Reduce Duplicate Content Clutter
    The web is full of duplicate content. Search engines try to index and display the original or “canonical” version. Searchers only want to see one version in results. And site owners worry that if search engines find multiple versions of a page, their link credit will be diluted and they’ll lose ranking. Today, Google, Yahoo and Microsoft (links are to their separate announcements) have united to offer a way to reduce duplicate content clutter and make things easier for everyone. Webmasters rejoice! Worried about duplicate content on your site? Want to know what “canonical” means? Read on for …
  • Google Turns Off Radio Ads
    Google continues to pull back the reins on some of its product and service offerings, today announcing that they’re shutting down Google Audio Ads and Google Radio Automation. In a post on the Google Traditional Media blog, Google’s Susan Wojcicki explains the service wasn’t as successful as they hoped: In 2006, we launched Google Audio Ads and Google Radio Automation to create a new revenue stream for broadcast radio, produce more relevant advertising for listeners and streamline the buying and selling of radio ads. While we’ve devoted substantial resources to developing these products and learned a lot along the way, we …
  • Google “My Tracks” Uses Android GPS To Capture Outdoor Performance
    Google’s new Android-only app My Tracks is a “route tracking and outdoor training aid” that helps runners, skiers, bikers and other outdoor enthusiasts capture their routes and performance using the phone’s GPS chip. The data can be uploaded to Google Docs, Google Maps (in the form of My Maps) and/or otherwise shared (e.g., via Twitter with Twidroid). …
  • How To Lose Money & Alienate Your Customers
    With all the emphasis lately on how to market in a down economy, I’ve decided to go against the grain and dole out some advice for those organizations wanting to make less money (this is the “Just Behave” column, after all, and it sure seems like we could benefit from some decidedly contrarian thinking). Seriously, everyone is so focused on helping the weak “profit-seeking” companies weather this financial storm that the needs of all the strong companies needing to waste money have been overlooked. Well, not on my watch. So for those companies looking for ways to keep those pesky …
  • Sorry Abraham Lincoln, Charles Darwin Gets The Google Logo
    If you visit Google today, on Abraham Lincoln’s birthday, you will see a Google logo for Charles Darwin. Here is the logo, which links to a Google search for charles darwin: It is also Charles Darwin’s birthday and I guess Darwin, the father of evolution, is more important than one of the most important US Presidents of all time, Abraham Lincoln. How did Google pick Darwin over Lincoln? Who knows – but they did. Personally, I am glad I did not have …
  • Google Buys Paper Mill In Finland For New Data Center
    Google plans data centre at old Finnish paper mill from Reuters reports Google purchased a Finnish paper mill from Stora Enso for $51.7 million dollars as a possible place to put a new data center. Google told Reuters, “We are currently considering to build a data centre at this site.” The location is in southeastern Finland, where part of the land will be transferred to the city of Hamina for other purposes. Stora Enso closed down the mill in early 2008, which has been in operation for 53 years. The deal is suppose to close by the …
  • Microsoft Continues Peeling Off Yahoo Search Talent
    Microsoft (so far) has been unable to buy Yahoo or Yahoo search assets, so it instead continues to take search talent away from the company. Last year Microsoft successfully lured engineering lead Qi Lu from Yahoo to become head of the company’s Online Services Group. Redmond also recently nabbed Sean Suchter from Yahoo. Now Bloomberg and CNET report that another Yahoo executive, Larry Heck, will be working on Microsoft search. Heck was, until now, Vice President of the Search & Advertising Sciences at Yahoo Labs. Before that he was Vice President of R&D at Nuance Communications, “where he …
  • Are You Sitting On A Good Idea?
    Some project ideas I just sit on and wait. And since time is money, sitting on a good idea is usually a bad idea. If the idea is good, someone else is probably thinking of it too, and if they beat you to market then you are not remarkable when you launch. Search engines tend to like sites which have organic / editorial inbound links, and sites that they have learned to trust due to their age / history. The simple truth is that most new sites are web spam or duplication of existing sites, adding little value to search …
  • Google Penalizes Google Japan For Buying Links
    Matt Cutts twittered that Google.co.jp was penalized for paying for blogger reviews. If you look at the FriendFeed details, you will see Matt first said, “Google.co.jp PageRank is now ~5 instead of ~9. I expect that to remain for a while.” And then when he was questioned if this was a paid link penalty, he said “yes.” Google Blogoscoped has more details about the why with their story named Google Japan Reportedly Bought Blog Posts in Promotion Campaign, Now Issued Apology.
    Akky Akimoto at the Asiajin blog recently reported that Google Japan was paying bloggers to …

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Matt McGee
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Matt McGee joined Third Door Media as a writer/reporter/editor in September 2008. He served as Editor-In-Chief from January 2013 until his departure in July 2017. He can be found on Twitter at @MattMcGee.

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